Hill activists and Bengali residents in Khagrachhari have faced off over the alleged rape of a Marma schoolgirl, prompting authorities to impose Section 144 in Guimara, banning all gatherings. The Guimara Upazila administration enforced the same measure for similar reasons. Although tension remained high, Khagrachhari town saw relative calm through the morning’s blockade. With road communication cut, much of the hill town stood “disconnected”. Around 1:30pm, tension flared again near the Upazila complex road at Narankhila when hill protesters and Bengali residents confronted one another briefly.
